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Modeling the sea currents in open basins: The case study for the Hawaiian Island region

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Abstract

The fields of currents in open basins are studied with the use of a mathematical model of ocean hydrodynamics. The area of the Hawaiian Islands is taken as an example. The model, based on three-dimensional equations of thermohydrodynamics, is solved for a domain with open boundaries, at which adaptive boundary conditions are set. We analyze the results of numerical experiments with given monthly mean climatic conditions at the ocean surface and open lateral boundaries with consideration for tides M 2 and K 1. A comparison of the model solutions and observational data shows that the model can realistically reproduce the mean parameters of the ocean state and their variability. The model solutions for the given area were found to have a northward current in the upper oceanic layer. This current clearly manifests itself in averaged fields. The characteristics of averaged currents indicate that the upper 100–150-m layer between the islands of Hawaii and Maui as well as between the islands of Molokai and Oahu is characterized by water transport from the west to the east side of the ridge of islands. The results obtained and the model proposed can be used to monitor physical fields of the ocean.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Scientific Center of Aerospace Monitoring Aerokosmos, Gorokhovskii per. 4, Moscow, 105064, Russia

    V. G. Bondur & Yu. V. Grebenyuk

  2. Institute of Numerical Mathematics, Russian Academy of Sciences, ul. Gubkina 8, Moscow, 119991, Russia

    R. A. Ibrayev

  3. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Nakhimovskii pr. 36, Moscow, 117997, Russia

    G. A. Sarkisyan

Authors
  1. V. G. Bondur
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  2. R. A. Ibrayev
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  3. Yu. V. Grebenyuk
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  4. G. A. Sarkisyan
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Correspondence to V. G. Bondur.

Additional information

Original Russian Text © V.G. Bondur, R.A. Ibrayev, Yu.V. Grebenyuk, G.A. Sarkisyan, 2008, published in Izvestiya AN. Fizika Atmosfery i Okeana, 2008, Vol. 44, No. 2, pp. 239–250.

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Bondur, V.G., Ibrayev, R.A., Grebenyuk, Y.V. et al. Modeling the sea currents in open basins: The case study for the Hawaiian Island region. Izv. Atmos. Ocean. Phys. 44, 225–235 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1134/S0001433808020102

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